Effects of perturbing forces on the orbital stability of planetary systems
We consider dynamical effects of additional perturbative forces due to the non-point mass nature of stars and planets: effects such as quadrupolar distortion and tidal friction in the systems of exo-planets. It is shown that these forces should not be neglected while modelling the dynamics of planetary systems, especially taking into account the undefined real masses of the planets due to unknown orbital inclinations and the unsatisfactory application of Keplerian fits to the radial velocity data in multiple planetary systems.
astro-ph↗